By Any Other Name
by RonaldAndMione
Summary: Eight years after the war ends, Bill finds Ron on his doorstep once more.


**By Any Other Name**

It was a few days before Hermione's due date, so it was quite a shock for Bill to see Ron at his doorstep. Nevertheless, Bill let his brother through the door of his home, something he'd had to do quite a few times in his lifetime. He wasn't complaining, though. Ron wasn't, and had never been, a burden and it was always good to see him. When they were growing up, Bill hadn't really had much to do with Ron - for Ron had only been a year old when Bill left for school. The war, however, had brought them closer together and allowed Bill to truly get to know his youngest brother. After the war, the whole Weasley clan had remained just as close to each other, which meant that Sunday brunches were a frequent occurrence.

But in the last few weeks Ron and Hermione hadn't been showing up, for although flooing was allowed for pregnant witches, in the last month it was not recommended until the baby was being born and they had to get it to the hospital. Apparating was, of course, a 'no-no' and Hermione couldn't stand the long drive, so the couple had to stop making appearances at the Burrow.

Bill was quite happy to let his brother in because, truth be told, he'd really missed him.

"Ron, how are you going?" Bill asked him.

"Good, yeah," Ron said a little dazedly, sleepiness as well as the aftereffects of apparating weighing on his mind and affecting his actions.

"Have a seat," Bill gestured to the sitting room, but there was no need, for Ron had already settled in on the white couch, which had, several years ago, been pristine and perfect, but was now stained with spilt pumpkin juice and bright paint, the cause of which being the two girls and one boy that had been born since then. "Tired?"

"Yeah, a bit," Ron admitted, rubbing his eyes with his hands. "Just been staying up, getting the nursery sorted and last night Hermione kept me up by complaining about how she can't sleep. Makes two of us now."

Bill snorted and sat down on the couch across from him.

"Where's Fleur?" asked Ron.

"Putting down Dom and Louis for their naps," Bill said with a grin that Ron returned - everyone knew that Fleur absolutely despised the nickname 'Dom' her beautiful Dominique had acquired. Being the loving husband he was, Bill seized the opportunity to use it every time he could.

"Will she be down in a bit?"

"Yeah, she'll arrive in a moment."

"Okay," Ron said and put his hands on his knees. Bill could see Ron surreptitiously wiping his palms against his cotton trousers.

"You all right, Ron?" Bill frowned.

"Yeah," Ron said, nodding vehemently.

"Not going to try and convince my wife to run away with you, are you?" Bill asked, unable to refrain from teasing the brother who had, so many years ago, lusted for Fleur.

"_No_," said Ron, and rather defensively, too, and Bill was taken back to when Ron was a little boy and how he'd deny things in that very same way. Some things would never change.

"She'll be here soon," Bill said with a smile. Then, for a brief moment, his smile faltered. "Everything is all right, isn't it?"

"Wha- yeah, yeah, of course," Ron rushed. "Hermione's fine, the baby's fine, I'm fine, Crookshanks the bloody menace is still fine... Nothing's wrong."

"That's good," Bill said with a sigh of relief. At that moment, Fleur glided into the room.

"Ron!" she exclaimed with her raspy French accent. "What are you doing here?"

"Ron's got something to tell us," Bill explained.

"Of course," Fleur breathed out and gracefully sat herself down on the couch beside her husband. She glanced across at Ron expectantly. He stared blankly at them for a moment before realising they were waiting.

"Me and Hermione have been talking a lot about this, and we've had a decision for a while now, but we reckon that we ought to tell you now before the baby's born, because what with all the commotion after the baby's born we won't get a moment to tell you calmly."

Bill and Fleur remained quiet and expectant.

"We haven't told anyone this, but the baby's going to be a girl."

Both Bill and Fleur gasped in delight. Bill congratulated his brother while Fleur exclaimed in joy. Ron grinned at them, and Bill could see his eyes getting a little misty though he knew Ron would never admit it.

"We've known for ages," Ron said softly, then cleared his throat. "We were going to make it a surprise for us too but you know Hermione - she couldn't stand not knowing."

Bill smirked as Fleur said reassuringly, "Per'aps next time?"

Ron let out a small laugh. "Ah, we'll see, depends on how Hermione feels."

"She's got you wrapped around her finger, hasn't she?" Bill jibed and ever-mature Ron stuck up a certain finger at him whilst Fleur made a disapproving sound.

"Next time," Ron murmured quietly. "Haven't had the first one and you're already talking about another."

"But you are Weasleys!" Fleur exclaimed. "You 'ave to 'ave more!"

"Not seven, that's for sure," Ron chuckled. "But yeah, we want more, despite what Hermione is currently saying."

Fleur's laugh echoed around the room, reminding Bill of a bell. "Ah, yes, the last few weeks are not pleasant. I remember, with Victoire, telling Beel zat I would not touch him, let alone 'ave another child with him."

Bill winced as he too remembered. Those last few weeks of pregnancy weren't pleasant for him, either.

"Anyway," Ron continued. "We kind of _have_ to have more, given what I'm about to tell you."

Bill frowned. "Are you sure everything's okay, Ron?"

"Yeah!" Ron exclaimed. "Definitely! This is good news! At least, I think it should be for you."

"For us?" Fleur asked curiously.

Ron nodded at her, a slow smile spreading on his face, before turning to Bill. "We want you to be the godparents."

Fleur gasped and stood up from the couch in shock, whilst Bill stared at Ron, jaw slackening. Ron continued to smile at them, which only further confused Bill.

"Wha-" Bill began as Fleur re-settled herself beside him. "Why?" he finally managed to get out.

"'_Why?_'" Ron repeated, scoffing. "What do you mean 'why?'"

"It's just-" Bill fumbled, rubbing Fleur's knee partly to calm her down and partly to receive some certainty and assurance. "We all thought- _Harry_—"

"He knows." Ron interrupted, grinning. "He's fine with it, said it makes sense."

"'Makes sense?'" Now it was Bill's turn to mimic. "You two are like brothers!"

"And what are we?" Ron countered, which shut Bill up for a moment. After a pause, Ron sighed. "Hermione and I always wanted two kids. We both wanted more than one and two just seemed like a neat number –"

"Neat?" Bill raised an eyebrow.

"You know Hermione," Ron rolled his eyes. "Anyway, before she got pregnant—around the time Ginny first announced she was expecting, we began to think about our kids and… and how many, what names we liked – really vaguely – and who we wanted for godparents. Harry and Ginny were a given, especially when they told us we were James' and… and I don't know, we wanted you to be the other pair."

Ron took a deep breath and looked down at the luxurious fluffy red carpet beneath him, as if mustering up strength to continue. "I guess you have a right to be surprised, I mean… you were going off to Hogwarts when I was born and we hardly knew each other – and I don't blame you, that's just the age gap and you being away – but whenever you came home for the holidays, I just always thought you were _so cool_ and you were so popular and besides that, you were the oldest, and you just seemed to have it all together."

Ron quieted, glanced down at the ground again, and Bill thought he'd finished.

"That's why you want us to be godparents? I was cool?"

Ron's eyes shot up. "No," he said defensively again. "Let me finish."

"All right," Bill conceded. "Keep going."

"Anyway," Ron resumed, and this time his voice was particularly low and quiet, like soft thunder rumbling far away. "You seemed to have it all together and I guess that's why I thought of you when I… when I had nowhere else to go." There was a pause as both brothers made eye contact, remembering the particularly cold and harsh winter many years earlier. "And you took me in and you didn't ask, you didn't judge, there wasn't any of that…and it meant - it means – a lot to me." Ron stared right at Bill, right into his eyes. "It means _everything_ to me."

Bill swallowed and it was now Fleur's turn to rub his knee reassuringly. "You are more than welcome here anytime, Ron," she said softly.

"Thanks," Ron said, also swallowing thickly. "Hermione said it means a lot to her too, you know… that you guys cared for me when she couldn't… that's what she said. I guess that's why she was so on board with it when I suggested it.

"And the other reason I wanted it to be you two was… you saved her."

Both Bill and Fleur immediately knew what he was talking about. A stillness settled over them as they were taken back to a night in March 1998 that had changed all of their lives. Ron's eyes were sparkling and it took him a while to continue. "You saved her and I—I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't… if we couldn't…"

"You don't need to know," Bill said quietly. "It's all passed."

"Yeah," Ron murmured, but he quickly rubbed his sleeve over his eyes before he smiled. "Anyway, after what you guys have been to us, it just… it made sense."

"Makes sense," Bill repeated quietly, now understanding why Harry was so quick to accept being shunned.

Ron caught on to that thought and smirked. "That's why we now have to have another kid," he said. "We've got to give him and Ginny a godchild."

Finally Fleur, who had been relatively quiet since Ron had first announced the news, spoke. "Ron, why can't they be the godparents of your first born?"

At that, Ron's smirk changed into a softer smile. "That's actually the other bit of news we wanted to share with you two."

"There's more?" Bill said quietly under his breath.

"Yeah," Ron said. "More specific to Fleur, actually."

"Moi?" Fleur exclaimed, so surprised she resorted to her native tongue.

"Yeah, you—toi or tu or whatever," Ron said, chuckling. "Anyway, as soon as we found out it was a girl, we knew we wanted to name her Rose."

"Rose," Fleur breathed, lips curving into a soft smile. "Oh, 'ow beautiful!"

"Good choice," Bill agreed. "Rose Weasley. Has a ring to it. And it feels like a Weasley name? What with red roses, red hair and all."

"All part of why we chose it," Ron said, shrugging his shoulders in attempt to look passive, but his broad smile and shining eyes gave away his emotions. "After that name came up, could we really go for any other? Also, it's a flower and… and we wanted to acknowledge you, Fleur."

Fleur's smile faded and her hands went up to her mouth as her face changed into a picture of stunned beauty. After a pause, Bill voiced his confusion. "Sorry, but how are you acknowledging Fleur by calling her Rose? Completely different names."

Ron raised an eyebrow at him. "Don't you know your wife? Fleur means flower in French."

"Oh!" Bill exclaimed. "I knew that!"

"'ush!" Fleur said, snapping out of her daze and lightly tapping his knee in reproach. "Don't ruin this moment for me!" Looking back at Ron, she stood up and walked around the small table between them. She gestured for him to also rise and the moment he'd gained his balance she was wrapping her arms around him in gratitude. Ron looked over her shoulder at his brother, looking surprised at the display of emotion.

He didn't know.

He didn't know what it meant to Fleur and, as a result - because when you're married you share your partner's emotions and achievements – to Bill. Though not specifically naming their child after her, the fact that they'd tied the name to her meant they were acknowledging Fleur as a significant figure in their lives, a significant member of the family. Fleur, who still at times felt like a foreigner not only in Britain, but in the Weasley family, must have been particularly touched at this gesture. Bill smiled at his little brother, mentally thanking him.

Fleur pulled back to look at Ron. "And 'Ermione, she does not mind?"

"Course not!" Ron exclaimed. "She suggested it! Like I'd know enough French to put two and two together. As soon as we found out it was a girl, she said the name had to be some flower in your honour. And Rose just… worked."

That was when Fleur started to cry. Not excessively, of course, but slim tearstreaks, shining silver in the light, trailed down her pale skin.

"Fleur?" Ron asked worriedly.

"Thought you'd be used to crying women by now, given that Hermione's been pregnant for almost nine months," Bill said, standing up to lean across the table and tug on his wife's hand. "Come on now, love."

Fleur fanned her free hand close to her face in an attempt to restore her poise and grace. Finally, she came round to the couch Bill was on and sat down on it. Once she was settled, she glanced up at Ron and uttered, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Ron said, shrugging his shoulder and giving her a grin. "S'nothing, really."

Fleur shook her head at him and smiled.

"Anyway, we don't know if our next one will be a girl or not, so we thought we ought to call this one Rose and have you two be the godparents. If we're naming it after one of you, you both ought to be the godparents, you know?" Ron looked over at Bill. "Didn't want to leave this one out!"

He and Fleur laughed whilst Bill remained quiet, pretending to look annoyed at Ron's quip. In truth, he was thrilled. Fleur now knew that it was not only because of Bill that she would be a godparent, but because of herself, too, and the impact that she specifically had made upon Ron and Hermione. She was now a part of the family in a way she hadn't felt before, and it left a feeling of tenderness and content in Bill's heart.

The relative peace was suddenly broken by a sharp wail. Fleur's laughter cut off. "That'll be Louis," she said quietly. "Almost a year old and still cries like a newborn." She gave Bill a quick kiss on the cheek and got up, leaving the two men alone.

After a pause, Ron spoke. "That'll be me and Hermione soon, right?" Bill smirked at him. Ron chose that moment to get up too. "I better get back then," he said. "Don't want to leave Hermione alone for too long."

"I know the feeling," Bill said, getting up to say goodbye. "Any moment now, I suppose."

Ron took in a shaky breath and exhaled. "Yeah, any moment."

Bill clapped him on the shoulder. "Come on, you've got this."

Ron nodded. "Yeah, we do," he said, then smiled at Bill. "Thanks."

Then Bill pulled him into a hug, simply because the moment called for it. "My baby brother, about to have a baby of his own."

"Oh, shut up," Ron said, pulling away, but grinned. "Thanks again, Bill. See you… in St. Mungo's, I suppose."

"See you," Bill replied, passing him some Floo powder. Ron took it and headed over towards the fireplace. Just before he disappeared, he gave Bill one last, albeit nervous, wave. He called out the address of his home and with a puff of smoke, he vanished.

Bill smiled at the now empty fireplace. Ron was going to be fine.

_Half of this was written over a year and a half ago, right before I was struck by insane writer's block as well as a busy and stressful life. Managed to find some time and some inspiration a few weeks ago to finally finish it. Very unlikely you'll see anything else new from me anytime soon but I'm still around._

_Thanks to Christy, my beta!_

_Feeling rusty, so please leave some feedback!_


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